. >>> the pentagon is facing massive budget cuts in the coming weeks and if congress fails to act, a series of cuts will be made to the u.s. military's defense capabilities. >> reporter: during a fall debate, president obama said the is quester, quote, will not happen. but now his white house was saying domestic programs will be cut 9% and military programs will be cut 13% this year. unless congress takes action. >> putting our fiscal house in order calls for a balanced approach and not indiscriminate cuts that can have a severe impact our military preparedness. >> reporter: for the balanced approach, republicans think they gave a lot of ground during fiscal cliff negotiations, a spokesman for speaker boehner said the president got the higher taxes on the wealthy last month with no corresponding cuts. the tax issue is resolved and spends is the problem still. meanwhile, military leader are sounding the alarm. >> instead of being a first- rate power in the world, we turn into a second-rate power. that would be the result of the sequester. >> reporter: the white house said tell be to f